The
program leading to the M.S. degree in materials science and engineering provides intensive
preparation for professional practice in modern materials science by those
engineers who wish to continue their education. Courses are offered at a time
and location convenient for the student who is employed on a full-time basis.

The objective of the
doctoral program in materials science and engineering is to prepare individuals to
perform original, cutting edge research in the broad areas of
materials science, including areas such as nano-structured materials,
electronic, optical and magnetic materials, bio-mimetic materials,
polymeric materials, MEMS materials and systems, organic electronics, and advanced
processing of modern materials.

Advanced Electron Microscopy Laboratory

Focused
Ion Beam /Scanning Electron Microscopy

The focused ion beam system is a FEI Nova
200 NanoLab which is a dual column SEM/FIB. It combines ultra-high resolution field emission scanning electron
microscopy (SEM) and focused ion beam (FIB) etch and deposition for nanoscale
prototyping, machining, 2-D and 3-D characterization, and analysis. Five gas injection systems are available for
deposition (e.g. Pt, C, SiO2) and etching
(e.g. Iodine for metals, and a dielectric etch). Nanoscale chemical analysis is
done with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). A high resolution digital patterning system
controlled from the User Interface is also available. Predefined device structures in Bitmap format
can be directly imported to the patterning system for nanoscale
fabrication. The FEI Nova 200 is also
equipped with a Zyvex F100 nano-manipulation stage, which includes four
manipulators with 10 nm positioning resolution. The four manipulators can be fitted with either sharp whisker probes for
electrically probing samples or microgrippers for manipulating nanostructures
as small as 10 nanometers. This is the
first instrument of its kind in the world that combines a dual beam FIB with
the F100 nanomanipulator, providing unparalleled nanofabrication and nanomanipulation.

High-Resolution
Transmission Electron Microcopy

The facility operates and maintains two
state-of-the-art transmission electron microscopes (TEM), and a host of sample
preparation equipments. It also provides
microscopy computing and visualization capabilities. Techniques and equipment available includes
the following: (i)High Resolution Structural
Analysis - The
high-resolution imaging TEM is a JEOL 2100 F which is a 200kV field emission
TEM. Its capability includes atomic
scale structural imaging with a resolution of better than 0.19 nm, and in-situ
STM/TEM. (ii) High Resolution Chemical and
Electronic Structure Analysis - High resolution analytical
TEM is a second JEOL 2100F field emission TEM/STEM equipped with an energy
dispersive x-ray spectrometer (EDS), an electron energy loss spectrometer
(EELS), and a high angle Z-contrast imaging detector. This instrument performs chemical and
electronic structure analysis with a spatial resolution of better than 0.5 nm
in EELS mode and is also capable of spectrum imaging and mapping. The image resolution in the chemically sensitive
Z-contrast scanning TEM (STEM) mode will be about 0.14 nm. Its capability also includes in-situ
cryogenic cooling and heating, and a computer control system for remote
microscopy operation.

X-ray
Diffraction Suite

A Rigaku Ultima III X-ray
Diffractometer system is available for thin film diffraction characterization.
The system is equipped with a cross beam optics system to permit either
High-resolution parallel beam with a motor controlled multilayer mirror, or a
Bragg-Brentano Para-Focusing beam (without the multilayer mirror) which are
permanently mounted, pre-aligned and user selectable with no need for any
interchange between components. Curved graphite crystal or Ge monochrometers
are also available. An integrated annealing attachment permits the in-situ examination of film structure up
to 1500°C. The instrument enables a variety of applications including in-plane
and normal geometry phase identification, quantitative analysis, lattice
parameter refinement, crystallite size, structure refinement, residual stress,
density, roughness (from reflectivity geometries), and depth-controlled phase
identification. Detection consists of a
computer controlled scintillation counter. Sample sizes up to 100 mm in
diameter can be accommodated on this system. A new Rigaku Rapid Image Plate Diffractometer system is also available
for small spot (30mm - 300mm) XRD work. The digital image plate system enables
the acquisition of diffraction data over a 204° angle with a rapid laser
scanning readout system.An integrated annealing attachment permits the in-situ
examination of film structure up to 900C on this system. A complete set of new
control, database and analysis workstations and software is associated with
these new systems.

Wafer Bonding Laboratory

An UHV wafer bonding unit, especially
designed to use surface characterization and thin-film deposition techniques to
measure and control substrate and interface chemistry within limits necessary
to make heterojunction devices, is available to produce integrated
heterostructures with well controlled chemistry that are tractable for
quantitative nanostructural and properties measurements. This unit is capable of
synthesizing interfaces by direct wafer bonding and/or in-situ thin film
deposition method, and offers greater flexibility for producing advanced
integrated artificial structures. It
consists of five interconnected ultra high vacuum (UHV) chambers for in-situ
surface preparation and analysis, addition of interface interlayers by e-beam
or UHV sputter deposition, a bonding chamber, and a sample entry and
preparation chamber. The base pressure is 2x10-10
Torr. Orientation of the bonded pairs
can be controlled to ~ 0.1 degree prior to bonding. Ex-situ surface preparations using etching
and low energy reactive plasma cleaning is done in a cleanroom to protect
substrates prior to insertion in the bonding instrument. An atomic force microscopy (AFM) is also
available to provide direct measurements of these effects, to supplement the
indirect information of RHEED.

Computational Materials Science
Laboratory

Materials modeling software tools and
hardware facilities are available for nanoscale materials research. Atomistic
modeling software tools are used for structure and dynamic analysis of diverse
material systems at nanoscales, and the examples include nanoelectronic
materials and nanomaterials for renewable energy applications. For quantum
mechanical analysis of materials, density functional theory (DFT) software
tools (VASP, ABINIT, PWSCF, and SIESTA) are used on local parallel computing
cluster. In-house quantum transport modeling software tool is used for I-V
calculation of nanoelectronic devices using the non-equilibrium Green’s
function (NEGF) method. These software and hardware tools are also used for
class projects of MSEN 5377.

Cleanroom Research Laboratory

The new cleanroom facility located in the
Natural Science and Engineering Research Laboratory (http://www.utdallas.edu/eecs/cleanroom/) is
utilized for materials and device research. The facility has 5,000 sq. ft. of class 10,000 space. This facility contains semiconductor
processing equipment including optical and e-beam lithography, chemical
processing hoods, evaporation and sputter deposition systems, as well as a wide
variety of material and processing diagnostics.

In addition to the facilities on campus,
cooperative arrangements have been established with many local industries to
make their facilities available to UT Dallas graduate engineering students.

A
student lacking undergraduate prerequisites for graduate courses in Materials Science
and Engineeringmust complete these
prerequisites or receive approval from the graduate adviser and the course
instructor.

A
diagnostic exam may be required. Specific admission requirements follow.

The
student entering the MSEN program should meet the following guidelines:

•Student
has met standards equivalent to those currently required for admission to the
Ph.D. or Master’s degree programs in Electrical Engineering, Chemistry,
Physics, or Biology.

•a
grade-point average in graduate-level course work of 3.5 or better on a 4-point
scale

•GRE
scores of 500, 700 and 4 for the verbal, quantitative and analytical writing
components, respectively, are advisable based on our experience with student
success in the program.

Students who fulfill some of the above requirements,
if admitted conditionally, will be required to take graduate level courses as
needed to make up any deficiencies.

All
students must have an academic advisor and an approved degree plan. These are
based upon the student’s choice of concentration. Courses taken without advisor
approval will not count toward the 33 semester-hour requirement. Successful
completion of the approved course of studies leads to the M.S. degree.

M.
S. students undertaking the thesis option must carry out a research project
under the direction of a member of the Materials Science and Engineering
Affiliated Faculty and complete and defend a thesis on the research
project. A Supervisory Committee will be
appointed once the faculty member accepts the student for a research project.
The rules for the thesis defense are specified by the Office of the Dean of
Graduate Studies.

For
each of the proposed degree programs, students must pass the following core
courses with a grade of B or better:

Note:
the presence of a course number in parentheses indicates that this course will
be cross-listed with an existing course.

•MSEN
5310 Thermodynamics of Materials

•MSEN
5360 Materials Characterization

•MSEN 6324 (EE 6324)
Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials

•MSEN
6319 Quantum Mechanics for Materials Scientists

A
student may petition for waiver of core courses, and if the Materials Science
and Engineering Affiliated Faculty, or a designated committee, finds that the
student has mastered the course material, the student may replace that core
course with an elective course for a total of twelve semester credit hours.

A
minimum of 9 semester credit hours will be required from the Advanced Course
List

A
student lacking undergraduate prerequisites for graduate courses in Materials
Science and Engineeringmust
complete these prerequisites or receive approval from the graduate adviser and
the course instructor.

A
diagnostic exam may be required. Specific admission requirements follow.

The
student entering the MSEN program should meet the following guidelines:

•Student
has met standards equivalent to those currently required for admission to the
Ph.D. or Master’s degree programs in Electrical Engineering, Chemistry,
Physics, or Biology.

•a
grade-point average in graduate-level course work of 3.5 or better on a 4-point
scale

•GRE
scores of 500, 700 and 4 for the verbal, quantitative and analytical writing
components, respectively, are advisable based on our experience with student
success in the program.

Students who fulfill some of the above
requirements, if admitted conditionally, will be required to take graduate
level courses as needed to make up any deficiencies.

All students
must have an academic advisor and an approved degree plan. Courses taken
without advisor approval will not count toward the 60 semester-hour
requirement. Successful completion of the approved course of studies leads to
the MSE.

Each doctoral student must carry out original
research in the area of Materials Science and Engineering, under the direction
of a member of the Materials Science and Engineering Affiliated Faculty, and
complete and defend a dissertation on the research project. A Supervisory Committee will be appointed
once the faculty member accepts the student for a research project. Students
must be admitted to doctoral candidacy by passing a Qualifying Exam, which will
be administered at approximately the time that the students have completed
their course work. The rules for the
dissertation research and defense are specified by the Office of the Dean of
Graduate Studies.

For
each of the proposed degree programs, students must pass the following core
courses with a grade of B or better:

Note:
the presence of a course number in parentheses indicates that this course will
be cross-listed with an existing course.

•MSEN
5310 Thermodynamics of Materials

•MSEN
5360 Materials Characterization

•MSEN
6319 Quantum Mechanics for Materials Scientists

•MSEN 6324 (EE 6324)
Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials

A
student may petition for waiver of core courses, and if the Materials Science
and Engineering Affiliated Faculty, or a designated committee, finds that the
student has mastered the course material, the student may replace that core
course with an elective course for a total of twelve semester credit hours.

A
minimum of 9 semester credit hours will be required from the Advanced Course
List